Houston ICE agent charged with assault after hitting fleeing man; attorney says he’ll turn himself in

What video and reports show

Surveillance video released earlier shows Morales’ unmarked SUV cross a median and hit Parra Hernandez as he ran through a parking lot. Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare played body-camera footage on Friday showing Morales making sharp turns before stopping and getting out. Parra Hernandez is seen on the ground, screaming.

After another ICE agent arrives, Morales can be heard saying, “I was coming in, and I hit him with the car.” A sheriff’s office incident report says Parra Hernandez told deputies he ran from a traffic stop after Morales began pulling on a mask, and that Morales “threw the car” at him. The report also says Morales told deputies he did not brake but did not mean to hit him.

Injury and immigration operation

Mendoza-Cervantes’ daughter told immigrants’ rights group FIEL that her father had been dead for nearly a decade. Teare said authorities have a “significant amount of information” about Morales but did not elaborate.

Morales’ record and wider context

Harris County records show Morales was charged with misdemeanor theft in 2013 over four DVDs. The charges were dismissed after he paid a $270 fine and reached a plea deal. He unsuccessfully ran for Texas’ 34th congressional district this election cycle as “Bam Morales,” his attorney confirmed.

Morales wrote in a Ballotpedia candidate survey that he had served in the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division and later worked as a corrections officer and law enforcement officer. He listed veterans’ rights, economic issues and service guided by Christian principles among his priorities, and called illegal immigration one of the country’s biggest challenges. He also appeared as a Spanish translator at a 2024 Christian conference hosted by televangelist Johnson Suleman.